Welcome to week three of Temple Aliyah's Elul Celebration: Prelude to the High Holidays. During this month we are encouraged to practice teshuva (repentance) to achieve balance in our lives and build better relationships with others. Therefore, we invite you to use the provided information, videos, interviews, and resources to help you contemplate a fulfilling new year. Make this Elul one of the most meaningful of your life.
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Test Your Connection, Hook Into the Congregational Technology Dress Rehearsal
Tomorrow and Thursday, SEPTEMBER 9 and 10,
from 7 to 9 pm
Make sure you can attend services remotely – with Livestream, Zoom, or a Zoom Party. Try out your technology with volunteers from the congregation standing by at a virtual “help desk.” Press here for more information.
New Date Added to To Pick Up A Mahzor and Your High Holiday Survival Kit. Get A Bag Even If You Already Have A Mahzor!
Make your virtual High Holiday service experience the best and most fulfilling it can be. Pick up your High Holiday Survival Kit. Dates for pickup are Wednesday, September 9 from 9 to 11 am and 4-6 pm and our new date Sunday, September 13 from 9 to 11 am. If these times do not work, please contact Melissa Rudman at melissa@templealiyah.com. We will not be screen sharing the text so you will need a Mahzor. Press here to borrow a Mahzor from the synagogue and to find a time to pick up your High Holiday Survival Kit, like Ron Sadok (pictured above). Alternatively, you may download a pdf of the Mahzor here for a nominal fee - but still make sure to pick up a Survival Kit!
Say Hello To Your Temple Aliyah Community: Make Your Video NOW (DEADLINE THIS THURSDAY September 10!)
Join the many others who have already contributed Holiday greetings to our first, one-of-a-kind Temple “Temple Aliyah: Community Greetings and Stories.” This video is a way we can see one another during the High Holidays. Making a video is easy. Simply go to https://www.tribute.co/aliyah-memories. Wish others a quick “Shana Tova” or spend a bit more time sharing a short memory. Don’t miss out on being included!
Reflect, Recognize, and Resist Racial Privilege: A Discussion on Race During a Time of Repentance. Tuesday, September 15, 8:00 pm
Join Melissa Patrick, a black Jewish woman, for a candid conversation with Temple President Arlene Bryer, a Caucasian Jewish woman, about racial and ethnic identities and Judaism. This discussion is purposefully scheduled to take place during our High Holidays, to reflect on ourselves as Jews in a racially unjust world. Click here to view the flyer and learn more about the event. Click here to read a helpful article on the intersection of Judaism, privilege and racism before the discussion.
Look for Zoom link in future emails.
Practice Tooting Your Horn
Practice Tooting Your Horn! Take out your shofar and practice your Tekiah, Teruah, Shevarim, and of course, Tekiah Gedolah! You will have the opportunity to be seen (not heard) joining other shofar blowing members during the transition to the Torah service on second day of Rosh Hashana and at the conclusion of Yom Kippur. To learn to blow Shofar, press here with our Zoom Gallery.
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What is Selichot?
The experience of reciting Selichot provides a liturgical introduction to the High Holiday season. The Selichot prayers (the word “selichot” is the plural of “selichah” which refers to a prayer for forgiveness. “Selichah!” in modern Hebrew means, “Pardon me!”). The melodies mirror those on Yom Kippur. Ashkenazi Jews gather on the Saturday night before Rosh Hashanah while Sephardim gather in the early morning hours beginning even earlier in the month of Elul to recite these prayers. They are petitions for forgiveness. Saying the words, reciting the prayers (which include the confessionals that we recite on Yom Kippur, such as the Ashamnu), humming the melodies, etc. — all this contributes to the spirit of the season, which is reflection and contrition. Ideally, it leads — even before Rosh Hashanah — to teshuvah, repentance. Teshuvah means “repentance,” “response,” or “turning.” It is the process of taking a good hard look at ourselves, realizing where we have deviated from proper behavior, feeling regret, apologizing to those whom we’ve harmed and then acting differently. That’s not easy! And so Selichot provides the opportunity to start the process even before the “aseret yemei teshuvah,” the “ten days of repentance,” i.e., Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and the days between them. Traditionally, Ashkenazim recite these beginning at midnight; in our shul, the tradition is to start (and finish!) them much sooner.
On Saturday night September 12 at 8:00pm, the Conservative Movement comes together to learn, sing, and connect as a community. Over 60 rabbis and cantors will present, and a variety of Selihot services will be offered throughout the evening. This program is free and open to all.
Registration will close on Thursday, September 10
Register here
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JEWELS OF ELUL
(Inspirational Words from Our Professionals)
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Shanah Tova (Virtually!)
from Eitan Bloostein,
Director of Youth and Teen Engagement
(video time 5:47)
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A Message from Rabbi Perkins:
Support Masorti
Judiasm in Israel
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Journal Challenge. Each week, we are offering a point of reflection. Perhaps turn this thought into a journal entry.... A key aspect of teshuvah (repentance) is confession and confronting that from which we otherwise hide. Is there something in your life that you have been meaning to confront?
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Try out Kayla Reisman's
Birkot HaShachar Activity
Join Kayla, Temple Aliyah's Director of Congregational Learning and Engagement as she explores the significance and meaning of Birkot HaShachar (morning blessings) using a hands-on educational technique. Click here for printed directions.
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Learn about Honeybees
How much honey does a honey bee make in its lifetime? Answer: half a teaspoon! Learn about honeybees watching this video with Deb Spielman.
(video time 14:50)
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Let's Cook for Rosh Hashanah
Check out our Temple professionals' recipes; two from Eitan Bloostein, Director of Youth & Teen Engagement and another one from Linda Rosenburg, our Temple's Administrative Assistant!
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Greta Lee Splansky Explores
Rosh Hashanah Themes Through Art
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Let the Music Speak!
(A High Holiday Playlist for Easy Listening)
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Seder Ha'Avoda, Yishei Ribbo
Mi El Kamocha, Eyal Bitton
Adon HaSelichot, Masorti Israel
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Common and Not-So-Common Terms for Elul (test your knowledge)
by Elana Kling Perkins
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How to Access Services and What Technology You Will Need
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Mark your calendar NOW!
A Papercutting Workshop with Jeanette Kuvin Oren in Memory Of Jillian Segal, z”l. Tuesday, September 22, 7:45 pm.
Be a part of the inauguration of the Jillian Segal Memorial Fund at Temple Aliyah, which will support creative programming at Temple Aliyah. In this one-hour free zoom class you will tour Jeanette Kuvin Oren's Judaic Art studio, and create a papercut work of art. Appropriate for any age person who is comfortable with a sharp knife (not young children). Only 5 basic supplies needed.
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Please note that all times are subject to change. Please check the weekly Elul emails and the website at www.templealiyah.com for the most up to date information.
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Rosh Hashanah: A catalyst for Community Activism.
Have you ever wondered why your friends and family members are among those cleaning up the local park or volunteering at a soup kitchen in the early fall? It may have something to do with a rabbi's Rosh Hashanah sermon. Often, during the High Holidays, congregants are asked to make a commitment to their community.
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While Some Holidays Involve Fasting, Rosh Hashanah Involves a Feast.
It is traditional to eat apples dipped in honey to represent the hope of a sweet year ahead. And, a traditional round challah symbolizes the cyclical nature of a year. Other common foods eaten during the High Holidays include dates, leeks, gourds, and black-eyed peas, all of which are mentioned in the Talmud as foods to eat on Rosh Hashanah.
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Find previous editions of the Elul Celebrations Newsletter on
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